City Manager’s Office
DATE: April 29, 2025
TO: Council Sustainability Committee
FROM: Rebecca Lucky, Sustainability Manager
VIA: Danielle Lee, Chief Sustainability and Resiliency Officer Audrey Seymour Ramberg, Assistant City Manager
SUBJECT: Proposed Framework for Climate Vulnerability Assessment
RECOMMENDATION
Review and approve the framework , deliverables, and analysis focus areas for conducting a Climate Vulnerability Assessment.
BACKGROUND
The recent winter wildfires in Los Ang eles demonstrate how unpredictable the environment is due to climate change. Extreme weather is becoming the new normal, which requires urgency and action, along with decarbonization, to address risks to the community’s safety.
On November 19, 2024 , the City Council approved a scope of work to undertake a decarbonization analysis and climate vulnerability assessment (CVA) that resulted in contracting with Cascadia Consulting Group (Cascadia) to perform the work. Since then, staff and the Cascadia team have been meeting to develop a project approach and review relevant City efforts, plans, and programs that would help inform the final analysis for a decarbonization strategy and a CVA. The decarbonization strategy and the CVA will be prepared as separate documents per the scope of work approved by the City Council. Staff anticipates updating the Council Sustainability Committee (CSC) on the progress for the decarbonization analysis at a tentatively scheduled meeting on June 26, 2025.
The purpose of this report is to receive feedback and approval from the CSC on the proposed framework, deliverables, and focus areas for the CVA described in the Analysis section below.
ANALYSIS
A CVA evaluates how susceptible a community is to the negative impacts of climate change to support adaptation planning and decisions. A CVA is typically the first step towards developing Proposed Framework for Climate Vulnerability Assessment April 29, 2025
a comprehensive climate adaptation plan for the community that focuses on adjusting to impacts of climate change that are already happening or are likely to occur . While decarbonization and adaptation are two dis tinct approaches, they are complementary to addressing the impacts of climate change.
Climate Vulnerability Framework
The effects of climate change tend to be more harmful and challenging for vulnerable community members, such as children, seniors, people with disabilities or pre existing medical conditions, outdoor workers, people of color, low -income individuals or families, and those without stable housing. The CVA will evaluate how both vulnerable residents and community members in general will experience climate change in Mountain View and identify ways to enhance adaptive capacity and reduce exposure to climate risks, ultimately strengthening the City’s r esilience to climate change.
The CVA will align with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change framework, that provides general guidance on how to develop a CVA and focus areas to consider, such as environmental, social, and economic factors . The guiding principle that will drive Mountain View’s CVA is assessing climate vulnerability as a function of exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity. These terms and the relationship between them are illustrated in Figure 1 below.
Figure 1: Climate Vulnerability Framework
Systems that can be stressed by climate hazards, such as extreme weather events, include roads, power grids, and stormwater systems. While the impacts to these systems may be widespread, there may be greater sensitivity and challenges for some populations or in some neighborhoods
Proposed Framework for Climate Vulnerability Assessment April 29, 2025
due to social and economic factors. The CVA will identify neighborhoods that may be at a disadvantage compared to other areas of Mountain View, ensuring that equity considerations are embedded throughout the analysis.
Proposed CVA Deliverables
The CVA is not meant to be a comprehensive study of all climate vulnerabilities in Mountain View but rather to fill critical gaps and build upon existing initiatives. The CVA will produce the following deliverables:
• Identification of key climate hazards (e.g., extreme heat, wildfire, smoke/air quality, storms, wind, and flooding) and their impacts on the community. While the CVA will not provide an in-depth analysis of energy infrastructure, it will include critical data relevant to climate risk and resilience, such as power outage risks from extreme heat and wildfire events.
• Visualization of climate risks using spatial maps, figures, images, or other visuals, as well as metadata associated with these visualizations.
• Identification of potential actions the City and community can take to enhance adaptive capacity and reduce exposure to risks.
To avoid duplicative work, t he CVA will not focus on climate risks and vulnerabilities that are already being comprehensively addressed through other City initiatives, such as:
• Ecosystems and natural resources as these are prioritized in the City’s Biodiversity and Urban Forest Plan, which is currently being d eveloped. However, staff will integrate findings from the plan into the CVA as appropriate to ensure there is alignment. In addition, the CVA will also help inform the Biodiversity and Urban Forest Plan before it is adopted by the City Council.
• Sea level rise adaptation and coastal flood risk management is covered under the City’s existing plans and initiatives , as described in the 2021 Shoreline Sea Level Rise Study Update. Staff will integrate findings from the plans and initiatives as appropriate in to the CVA, which will provide additional information to support existing sea level rise adaptation plans and initiatives.
Proposed Framework for Climate Vulnerability Assessment April 29, 2025
Proposed CVA Analysis Focus Areas
The CVA will examine climate risks across sectors and subsectors shown in Table 1.
Table 1: Proposed Focus Areas for the CVA
Sectors Subsectors
Buildings and
Infrastructure
Housing: Single and multi -family residential buildings, as well as populations experiencing homelessness who are particularly vulnerable to extreme weather and displacement risks.
Transportation: City roads, public transportation services, and infrastructure, including transit -dependent populations who may face mobility challenges during climate events.
Emergency
Management
Public facilities and services: Police stations, fire departments, emergency response services, and designated shelters that play a crucial role in disaster preparedness and response.
Critical facilities : Schools, hospitals, and health -care centers that serve as essential resources for community safety, medical care, and emergency coordination.
Economic Well-Being/
Resilience
Local industries: Major technology and retail businesses, as well as small businesses (e.g., start -ups and neighborhood -serving businesses) that may be impacted by climate -related disruptions such as extreme heat, flooding, and power outages.
Health and Well-
Being
Physical health: Climate-related illness, injury, and mortality risks, including heat stress, respiratory diseases from wildfire smoke, and vector-borne illnesses, particularly for vulnerable populations.
Mental health: Psychological and emotional impacts of climate stressors, including disaster -related trauma, anxiety, and economic strain, particularly for vulnerable populations.
Community Engagement
Once the draft CVA is completed, the project team will conduct outreach to nonprofit and community-based organizations that serve vulnerab le populations in Mountain View . This will provide an opportunity to test the assumptions and findings made in the CVA as they relate to vulnerable populations. After completing the CVA , with Council direction to develop a climate adaptation plan, more robust community engagement could be conducted.
Proposed Framework for Climate Vulnerability Assessment April 29, 2025
NEXT STEPS
Following the CSC’s direction and approval of the proposed framework, staff anticipates presenting a draft CVA to the CSC in fall 2025 and a final draft to the City Council by the end of the year.
RL-DL/4/MGR
628-04-29-25M